TSA To Stop Confiscating .50 Cal Plus Ammo

Published: May - 2009

Long-term subscribers will remember we warned you last year that agents of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) were confiscating ammo that was larger than .50 caliber, claiming Department of Transportation (DOT) regulations did not allow for ammo of that size in passenger luggage on commercial flights. Several subscribers had reported losing their ammo this way on trips to Africa where they had planned to hunt dangerous game with rifles using .577 Nitro Express or .505 Gibbs ammunition. The confiscation ruined their trips.

The problem stemmed from a misreading, or misunderstanding, of a regulation limiting the size of ammunition for personal use that can be placed in a checked bag. The rule says ammo up to 19.1 mm in size is acceptable. That would have included ammo up to .75 caliber not .50 caliber. But the DOT posted on its web site (http://safetravel.dot .gov) that no ammo exceeding .50 caliber would be allowed, and TSA agents began taking hunters' ammo.

When we learned of this, we informed the NRA about the situation, and they immediately contacted authorities at the Transportation Security Administration. TSA and DOT officials held to their position. Thanks to the NRA's persistence and legal work, the DOT finally corrected its error - almost a full year later. The DOT web site now correctly states that ammunition up to .75 caliber may be transported. If you are traveling with ammo larger than .50 caliber this hunting season, you should print out the SafeTravel web page and take it with you just in case you encounter a TSA agent who didn't get the memo.